I can’t ever remember being able to sit cross-legged comfortably and every time I do a yoga session, there are some poses I can’t even attempt because I can't sit on the floor.
I didn’t need to take a hip mobility test to confirm that I am about as immobile as they come, but when I did try this four-move test, I was still surprised and a little concerned about the results.
The test has been put together by yoga teacher Lucas Rockwood, also known as YOGABODY on YouTube, and it challenges your hip flexion, extension and lateral and medial rotation.
It’s a simple and short test — you just have to adopt four positions and see how your hips move in each. No equipment is needed, and it took me five minutes to do.
Watch Lucas Rockwood’s hip test
The test aims to check the range of motion in your hips, because that is something many adults lose as they get older, partly because of sedentary lifestyles.
I don’t recall ever being all that mobile or flexible, even in my teens, but years of running every day, along with working at a desk, have left my hips in an alarming state, as the test revealed.
There are four parts to the test, each focused on a different movement pattern:
- Hip flexion test
- Hip extension
- Lateral rotation
- Medial rotation
In each part, you have to do a basic stretch and record your final position. Rockwood explains how to do each position, what to measure and what you should be aiming for.
For example, for hip flexion, you lie back and pull your knee to your chest to see how close it gets, measured by how many fists away from your chest your knee is.
What I learned from the test
In each of the four positions, I was a long way away from where I needed to be. My knee was two to three fists away from my chest in the hip flexion test, and in the hip extension test, I could barely hit the first, easiest, position of four — the aim is to get to the fourth position.
Worst of all was the lateral rotation test, which involves sitting in a butterfly position with your feet together and seeing how close you can get your knees to the floor. I needed five fists to measure that one, when ideally, you should be able to touch the floor with your knees.
In the last test, for medial rotation, I actually did OK, which could mean I am oddly able to rotate inwardly, or I just did the test slightly wrong.
With all those results recorded, I aim to heed the advice Rockwood gives in the video about how to stretch to improve hip flexibility and measure my results again in a few months.
Here’s my three-step plan for improving my hip health.
1. Stretch my hips every day
I’ve been good about stretching every day for the past couple of months to support my marathon training, and now I plan to add in more hip-focused stretches.
I’m already doing the couch stretch regularly, which works the hip flexors and quads, and plan to add the 90/90 stretch and frog pose to my routine.
Consistency trumps everything else, so I’m aiming for little and often rather than doing one or two big stretching sessions a week.
2. Use my breathing to relax and deepen my stretches
Whenever I do a guided yoga or stretching session with an instructor, I’m always struck by how much breathing correctly can deepen a stretch, but it’s something I then forget to do when stretching solo.
Using deep breaths to extend a stretch and get deeper into the position is something I plan to keep at the front of my mind when doing my daily routine, because if you can use your breathing to relax the target muscles, you improve the quality of your stretch.
3. Stretch for longer
I usually hold stretches for a slow count of five, or aim for 60 seconds in position, but I think my hips would benefit from holding the positions for much longer.
With the hip-focused moves in my routine, I aim to stretch for at least two minutes on each side. Clearly, that’s going to get a little boring, so I’ll make sure to line up a good podcast.
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